U.S. patent number 5,499,411 [Application Number 08/408,500] was granted by the patent office on 1996-03-19 for sand pocket beach blanket.
Invention is credited to King Wong.
United States Patent |
5,499,411 |
Wong |
March 19, 1996 |
Sand pocket beach blanket
Abstract
A blanket for weighted anchoring to a surface. The inventive
device includes a blanket web positionable upon a beach surface. A
plurality of anchor assemblies are secured to the blanket web and
operate to receive sand to anchor the blanket web relative to the
beach surface.
Inventors: |
Wong; King (Edison, NJ) |
Family
ID: |
23616533 |
Appl.
No.: |
08/408,500 |
Filed: |
March 22, 1995 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
5/417 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A47G
9/062 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
A47C
9/10 (20060101); A47C 9/00 (20060101); A47G
9/06 (20060101); A47G 009/06 () |
Field of
Search: |
;5/417,418,419 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Milano; Michael J.
Claims
What is claimed as being new and desired to be protected by Letters
Patent of the United States is as follows:
1. A sand pocket beach blanket comprising:
a blanket web formed of a substantially flexible material and
positionable upon a support surface;
a plurality of anchor means secured to the bottom surface of said
blanket web for receiving granular material therein to anchor said
blanket web to the support surface, each of said anchor means
comprising;
an interior pocket secured to the bottom surface of said blanket
web, said pocket having an opening only at one end extending across
said pocket;
an exterior pocket secured to the bottom surface of said blanket
web and partially overlying said interior pocket, said exterior
pocket having an opening only at one end extending across said
exterior pocket, the openings of said interior pocket and of said
exterior pocket facing one another and in communication with one
another;
the interior pocket comprising a main web having lateral webs
extending therefrom and secured to the bottom surface of said
blanket web, said main web extending between the lateral webs and
being secured to the bottom surface of said blanket web; and
the exterior pocket comprising a main web having lateral webs
extending therefrom and being secured to the bottom surface of said
blanket web, said main web extending between said lateral webs and
being secured to the bottom surface of said blanket web, said main
web overlapping the main web of said interior pocket to form a
closure therebetween.
2. The sand pocket beach blanket of claim 1 wherein the anchor
means further comprises a fastening means interposed between the
main webs of said interior and exterior pockets to secure said main
webs one to each other.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to blanket structures and more
particularly pertains to an sand pocket beach blanket for weighted
anchoring to a surface.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The use of blanket structures is known in the prior art. More
specifically, blanket structures heretofore devised and utilized
are known to consist basically of familiar, expected and obvious
structural configurations, notwithstanding the myriad of designs
encompassed by the crowded prior art which have been developed for
the fulfillment of countless objectives and requirements.
While the prior art blanket structures fulfill their respective,
particular objectives and requirements, the prior art does not
disclose a sand pocket beach blanket for weighted anchoring to a
surface which includes a blanket web positionable upon a beach
surface, and a plurality of anchor assemblies secured to the
blanket web for receiving sand to anchor the blanket web relative
to the beach surface.
In these respects, the sand pocket beach blanket according to the
present invention substantially departs from the conventional
concepts and designs of the prior art, and in so doing provides an
apparatus primarily developed for the purpose of weighted anchoring
to a surface.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known types
of blanket structures now present in the prior art, the present
invention provides a new sand pocket beach blanket construction
wherein the same can be utilized for weighted anchoring to a
surface to protect an individual from contact with such surface. As
such, the general purpose of the present invention, which will be
described subsequently in greater detail, is to provide a new sand
pocket beach blanket apparatus and method which has many of the
advantages of the blanket structures mentioned heretofore and many
novel features that result in a sand pocket beach blanket which is
not anticipated, rendered obvious, suggested, or even implied by
any of the prior art blanket structures, either alone or in any
combination thereof.
To attain this, the present invention generally comprises a blanket
for weighted anchoring to a surface. The inventive device includes
a blanket web positionable upon a beach surface. A plurality of
anchor assemblies are secured to the blanket web and operate to
receive sand to anchor the blanket web relative to the beach
surface.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important
features of the invention in order that the detailed description
thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that
the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated.
There are additional features of the invention that will be
described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the
claims appended hereto.
In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment of the
invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is
not limited in its application to the details of construction and
to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following
description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is
capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out
in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology
and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of description
and should not be regarded as limiting.
As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the
conception, upon which this disclosure is based, may readily be
utilized as a basis for the designing of other structures, methods
and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the present
invention. It is important, therefore, that the claims be regarded
as including such equivalent constructions insofar as they do not
depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention.
Further, the purpose of the foregoing abstract is to enable the
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the public generally, and
especially the scientists, engineers and practitioners in the art
who are not familiar with patent or legal terms or phraseology, to
determine quickly from a cursory inspection the nature and essence
of the technical disclosure of the application. The abstract is
neither intended to define the invention of the application, which
is measured by the claims, nor is it intended to be limiting as to
the scope of the invention in any way.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a new
sand pocket beach blanket apparatus and method which has many of
the advantages of the blanket structures mentioned heretofore and
many novel features that result in a sand pocket beach blanket
which is not anticipated, rendered obvious, suggested, or even
implied by any of the prior art blanket structures, either alone or
in any combination thereof.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a new sand
pocket beach blanket which may be easily and efficiently
manufactured and marketed.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a new
sand pocket beach blanket which is of a durable and reliable
construction.
An even further object of the present invention is to provide a new
sand pocket beach blanket which is susceptible of a low cost of
manufacture with regard to both materials and labor, and which
accordingly is then susceptible of low prices of sale to the
consuming public, thereby making such sand pocket beach blankets
economically available to the buying public.
Still yet another object of the present invention is to provide a
new sand pocket beach blanket which provides in the apparatuses and
methods of the prior art some of the advantages thereof, while
simultaneously overcoming some of the disadvantages normally
associated therewith.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a new
sand pocket beach blanket for weighted anchoring to a surface to
protect an individual from contact with such surface.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a new
sand pocket beach blanket which includes a blanket web positionable
upon a beach surface, and a plurality of anchor assemblies secured
to the blanket web for receiving sand to anchor the blanket web
relative to the beach surface.
These together with other objects of the invention, along with the
various features of novelty which characterize the invention, are
pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming
a part of this disclosure. For a better understanding of the
invention, its operating advantages and the specific objects
attained by its uses, reference should be had to the accompanying
drawings and descriptive matter in which there is illustrated
preferred embodiments of the invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The invention will be better understood and objects other than
those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is
given to the following detailed description thereof. Such
description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:
FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a sand pocket beach blanket according
to the present invention in use.
FIG. 2 is a side elevation view of the invention.
FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view taken along line 3--3 of FIG.
2.
FIG. 4 is a bottom plan view of a portion of the invention as
viewed from line 4--4 of FIG. 2.
FIG. 5 is a bottom plan view of a portion of the present invention
including a fastening means.
FIG. 6 is a cross sectional view taken along line 6--6 of FIG.
5.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to FIGS. 1-6
thereof, a new sand pocket beach blanket embodying the principles
and concepts of the present invention and generally designated by
the reference numeral 10 will be described.
More specifically, it will be noted that the sand pocket beach
blanket 10 comprises a blanket web 12 formed of a substantially
flexible material and positionable upon a support surface, such as
a sandy beach or the like. The blanket web 12 is illustrated in
FIG. 1 as being substantially rectangular in shape. However, the
blanket web 12 may be of any desired polygonal or geometric shape,
such as square, octagonal, or circular for example. A plurality of
anchor means 14 are secured to the bottom surface of the blanket
web 12 for receiving a granular material such as sand to anchor the
blanket web 12 to the support surface upon which it may positioned.
By this structure, the blanket web 12 can be selectively anchored
relative to a beach to preclude wind or other disturbances from
moving the beach blanket 10.
Referring now to FIGS. 2 through 4 wherein the anchor means 14 are
illustrated in detail, it can be shown that the anchor means 14
each comprise an interior pocket 16 secured to the bottom surface
of the blanket web 12, and an exterior pocket 18 similarly secured
to the bottom surface of the blanket web 12 and positioned
partially over the interior pocket 16 such that sand or other
granular material can be positioned within the exterior pocket 18
and into communication with an interior of the interior pocket 16.
In other words, the exterior pocket 18 overlaps the interior pocket
16, with sand or other material being positionable between the
overlapping portions of the pockets 16 and 18 to position such sand
within the interior of the exterior pocket 18. The interior of the
exterior pocket 18 is positioned in communication with the interior
of the interior pocket 16 such that the sand may readily flow into
the interior pocket to weight the anchor means 14 to preclude
lifting or shifting of the blanket web 12.
More specifically and as illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4, it can be
shown that the interior pocket 16 of the anchor means 14 comprises
an interior pocket main web 20 having interior pocket lateral webs
22 extending therefrom and coupled to the bottom surface of the
blanket web 12 by stitching 24 or other suitable fastening means
such as adhesives or heat sealing or the like. An interior pocket
end web 26 extends from the interior pocket main web 20 and between
the interior pocket lateral webs 22 to couple with the bottom
surface of the blanket web 12 and may be secured thereto by
stitching 24 or the other alternative means listed above. If
desired, a base web 28 can extend between the lateral webs 22 and
the end web 26 to permit the anchor means 14 to be molded from a
polymeric material or the like. Alternatively, the anchor means 14
can be comprised of a fabric material or other flexible material
conventionally known. With continuing reference to FIGS. 3 and 4,
it can be shown that the exterior pocket 18 similarly comprises an
exterior pocket main web 30 having exterior pocket lateral webs 32
extending laterally from the exterior pocket main web and being
coupled to the bottom surface of the blanket web 12 by the
stitching 24 or other means. An exterior pocket end web 34 extends
from the exterior pocket main web 30 and couples with the bottom
surface of the blanket web 12. Alternatively, the exterior pocket
end web 34 can be integrally formed as a portion of the base web 28
substantially as shown in FIG. 2 of the drawings. The exterior
pocket main web 30 is positioned so as to overlap the interior
pocket main web 20 so as to form a closure therebetween. By this
structure, sand or other granular material can be positioned
between the exterior pocket main web 30 and the interior pocket
main web 20 and into an interior of the exterior pocket 18. Sand
positioned within the exterior pocket 18 can then flow into an
interior of the interior pocket 16 so as to impart a greater weight
to the anchor means 14 to secure the device 10 to a surface such as
a beach or the like.
Referring now to FIGS. 5 and 6 of the drawings, it can be shown
that the anchor means 14 of the present invention 10 may further
comprise a fastening means 36 interposed between the interior
pocket main web 20 and the exterior pocket main web 30 for securing
the interior pocket main web to the exterior pocket main web. To
this end, the fastening means 36 preferably comprises a first
portion 38 of a fabric fastening material such as commonly known as
"VELCRO" which is secured to an interior surface of the exterior
pocket main web 30. A second portion 40 of the fabric fastening
material is secured to an exterior surface of the interior pocket
web 20 and thus cooperates with the first portion 38 to secure the
main webs 20 and 30 together to preclude an egress of granular
material or sand from an interior of the anchor means 14.
In use, the sand pocket beach blanket 10 according to the present
invention can be easily utilized to separate an individual from a
support surface, such as a sandy beach or the like. The anchor
means 14 can be selectively filled with a granular material such as
readily available sand to impart a greater weight to the anchor
means to secure the blanket web 12 relative to the beach
surface.
As to a further discussion of the manner of usage and operation of
the present invention, the same should be apparent from the above
description. Accordingly, no further discussion relating to the
manner of usage and operation will be provided.
With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized
that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of the
invention, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form,
function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed
readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all
equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and
described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by
the present invention.
Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the
principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications
and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is
not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and
operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable
modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within
the scope of the invention.
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